Ramesses II Chapel

This small chapel, built by Ramesses II, is located just off the ancient road that led to the South Gate of the Great Ptah Temple. The chapel originally contained a massive red granite statue of the gods Ptah and Sekhmet beside Ramesses II.

Entrance into the chapel was through a gateway flanked by seated statues of Ramesses II. If you keep your eyes peeled, you can see the legs of one of these statues still in place.

The gateway led into a courtyard. Behind this courtyard was a central chapel, inside which the red granite statue of Ptah, Sekhmet and Ramesses could be found. This statue, known as the Memphite Triad, is now displayed in the Memphis Open Air Museum.

Today you may be able to spot pots inside the temple. These show that the temple was used as a dwelling later on its life, long after the ancient gods had been forgotten. At this time, its block were taken away to be used in other buildings. The same thing happened to many other ancient structures at Memphis and around Egypt.